Ignored Identity

As it usually happens with an occupied nation, the identity of Wales has been overlooked by a travel guide and bunched together with the English identity, this article regarding the issue comes our way thanks to Wales Online:

Welsh castle is moved into England!

by Martin Shipton, Western Mail

A FULL-PAGE picture of Cardiff Castle appears in First Great Western’s on-board magazine for rail passengers – to advertise walks in England!

Last night the train firm apologised for the gaffe, which appears in the latest edition of Go to ... magazine, read by thousands of travellers between London and South Wales.

Beneath a colour picture of the castle’s medieval keep – and with the Red Dragon flag limp and barely visible against its pole – a caption reads: “Walks of life – Seeing England by foot is the best way to sample other people’s experiences of life. We set the pace with five of the best themed walks.”

The first of the walks, featured on the opposite page, is a stroll around the parks and gardens of Cardiff – without once mentioning Wales or that Cardiff is its capital city.

Plaid Cymru councillor Neil McEvoy, the Deputy Leader of Cardiff County Council, said: “It’s good that they are giving Cardiff’s parks and gardens publicity, but ridiculous that they’ve put us in the wrong country.

“It says quite a lot about the mindset of those who put this magazine together. Too many people classify Wales as being part of England. If you go to the Continent – unless it’s places like Brittany and the Basque Country, where they know better – people usually assume when you say you’re from Wales that you’re actually from England.

“It’s very important that we have our distinctive identity as a nation, and that the message is got across that we are a different country from England.

“I’ll be writing to the magazine to point out their mistake.”

Newport West Labour MP Paul Flynn, a frequent traveller on First Great Western’s trains between his constituency and London, said: “We’re used to this crass kind of mistake, but that doesn’t make it excusable. One would have thought the penny might have dropped by now.

“A little while ago someone told me he had met a lady visiting from California. She asked him three questions: Is it true that people set fire to your home if you don’t speak Welsh? Is it true all the pubs and clubs are shut on Sundays? Is it true that everyone works in coal mines or steelworks?

“He asked her whether that’s what people in California thought Wales was like. She said no – that’s what they had told her about Wales in London.

“They either ignore Wales or resort to old stereotypes.”

'Errors may occur'

A First Great Western spokesman said: “We attempt to check the accuracy of the information contained in our on-board magazine Go To but, in some instances, errors may occur for which we apologise.

“We have a rigorous copy checking procedure internally and externally with our agencies and partners, but sometimes things may slip through the net. We promote our products, services and fares in campaigns all over Wales and the West Country. The fact we gave precedence to Cardiff Castle in the feature with a full-page image is testament to this.

“First Great Western is fully committed to its role in Wales where we are a significant employer. This commitment to Wales and the language is further strengthened through our deep support of the National Eisteddfod.”

Ignoring Wales

* The index of the original 1768 edition of Encyclopaedia Britannica states in its index: “For Wales see England”.

* Wales is not represented on the Union Jack.

* Unlike the other UK nations, Wales is not represented on a new set of coins issued by the Royal Mint – at Llantrisant – last year.

* President Nicolas Sarkozy of France omitted to mention Welsh combatants who died in two World Wars at a commemorative battlefield event last November.

At least the editor apologized for the so called gaffe, in the case of Euskal Herria, Catalunya, Galiza and the Canary Islands it is the Spanish government the one that orders media outlets to divest those nations from their identity and insist that they are portrayed as Spanish.

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Welsh and Basque

This article published by Welsh OnLine tells us about how the Basque initiatives to rescue and strengthen Euskara (the Basque language) are an inspiration to other peoples defending their own languages, in this case, Welsh.

Here you have it:

Spanish example holds the key to the future of Welsh

Nov 19 2008 by Our Correspondent, Western Mail

Wales must learn lessons from the Basque country when it comes to ensuring the survival of Welsh, argues Catrin Dafydd of language campaign group Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg

THERE is no doubt that the next few months will have a far-reaching effect on the future of the Welsh language. Of course, there is no use discussing the Welsh language as a stand-alone figure in the corner of the pub. When we talk about languages, we talk about people and communities.

The One Wales Assembly Government is about to publish a draft Legislative Competency Order (LCO) that will show us possible legislative scenarios Welsh could face over the coming years.

And while legislation alone cannot change the situation, it can help ensure the future of a minority language in a globalised world.

A delegation from Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg recently visited the Basque country to see what people there are doing to keep their language alive.

Of all minority languages, the Basque language – or Euskara – has most in common with Welsh. There are about 600,000 Euskara-speakers in a country with a population of about three million.

From the moment you land in Bilbao, you notice a stark linguistic contrast to our own situation, with visual examples of stronger language legislation – bilingual signs are the norm and the co-operative supermarket chain Eroski provides own-brand packaging with instructions in up to five languages.

You are quickly made aware of the fact that in Euskadi – the autonomous community of the Basque country – citizens have a legal right to use the language in the public and (more recently) private and voluntary sectors. Because of this, companies such as EMUN have been set up to assist all kinds of private companies as they develop effective responses to language rights.

Companies are awarded certificates to show customers that staff are able to provide services in Euskara.

Moreover, the Observatory of Linguistic Rights provides a free phone service allowing people to log complaints when these rights are infringed. The complaints are then catalogued and presented to the government.

Lawyers working on behalf of Euskara Kultur Eskargoa are also responsible for representing Basque-speakers in courts of law. A system of defending peoples’ linguistic rights is an alien concept for us in Wales – currently we can only use Welsh in the courts under fairly limited circumstances.

Kontseilua is an umbrella group of 45 societies and institutions which campaign on linguistic matters. Most of these groups are indirectly funded by public money, yet they are happy to challenge and criticise government policy where necessary in order to promote the normalisation of the Basque language.

The government acts as a champion, not only passing legislation, but also taking responsibility to ensure it is implemented. There is a dialogue between institutions and government, in a country where the fact that independent bodies are ready to offer a critique of the linguistic legislative system is welcomed.

Back in Wales, we seem to be lagging behind other European nations in terms of language legislation. It is high time we redressed the balance between voluntary efforts to promote Welsh and the need for statutory guidance. The length and breadth of the LCO will show us just what the One Wales Government has in store. Will it create the necessary legislative conditions for Welsh language to thrive or will its growth be stunted once more?

The people of Wales should scrutinise the LCO for three things: that the Order allows Welsh to be recognised as an official language; that a commissioner is established to defend linguistic rights; and, most importantly, that it grants specific rights for anyone who chooses to use Welsh on a daily basis at work, at home, at school, at the shops or wherever.

Legislation isn’t a quick fix but positive changes can result. All eyes are on the One Wales Government as it unveils its vision for the Welsh language. Of course, we all have a role to play in ensuring Welsh is used in our communities. But for now, we should examine the exact details of the One Wales Government’s vision for a truly bilingual Wales.

Catrin Dafydd heads Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg’s campaign for a new Welsh Language Act

Now, it seems like the Western mail correspondent misses the whole point of the article by entitling his/her article "Spanish example".... is like if I would write an article about the defense of Welsh culture to go on and title it "English culture". This tells you just how deep the disinformation campaign set in place by Madrid against the Basques runs.

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Wales and Euskal Herria

The Guardian published this article that reflects the lessons that can be shared between the Basques and the Welsh:

Basque in glory

Wales has much to learn from successes of the Basque country , writes the Plaid Cymru president, Ieuan Wyn Jones

Thursday June 13 2002 10:53 BST

My visit to the Basque country came 20 years after its people had secured a high degree of autonomy within the Spanish state. In the early 1980s they established a parliament with legislative powers, they had the ability to raise their own taxes and expectations were high that self-government would restore their confidence as a nation.

I wanted to gauge the extent to which those expectations had been met. They must have been doing something right; the nationalist parties have been in power for all this period. I was also visiting at an important time in the Welsh electoral calendar, 12 months before the next election to the Welsh assembly.

Currently, the Basque government is run by a coalition of three parties, with the nationalist PNV being the senior partner. Their partners are the EA, a smaller nationalist party and an even smaller left wing/green group. I also wanted to see how the nationalist parties worked in government, how coalition government worked and what tensions existed after the Spanish parties - the PP and socialists - made a massive effort to unseat them in the 2001 elections.

The Basques seem to be at ease with their identity, and the confidence they exude as a nation is everywhere. They know exactly who they are, and are proud of the fact that Franco's terrible regime failed to extinguish their sense of nationhood or their love of their language. And there is very little support for violence or terrorism. The vast majority of Basques see constitutional politics as the only way forward.

Their self-belief and confidence is best exemplified by their audacious - and ultimately successful - bid to secure a new Guggenheim museum. The magnificent Frank O. Gehry building in the heart of Bilbao is a 21st-century architectural icon, and attracts visitors from all over the world. Bilbao, once a city in decline following the collapse of its shipbuilding industry, is now a modern, prosperous city which regularly appears on the must-see lists of wealthy tourists.

In 20 years of autonomy, the Basques have seen their economy grow to being the most successful in the Spanish state. The current growth rate of 5.3% compares favourably with any country in Europe, twice the UK rate, and almost four times as much as Wales. The Welsh are falling behind the rest of the UK, while the Basques are striding way ahead the rest of Spain.

The Basques' success is based on sound economics, and this has enabled them to improve their public services. I was particularly impressed with their commitment to education. We have a lot to learn from them in the strategic and focused way their system of education and training meets the needs of their growing economy.

When the Basque parliament was first established, the Basque language faced the same crisis as that which faces the Welsh language today. About 25% of the Basques spoke their language then, a figure which compares to the 20% who speak Welsh. They also faced a similar situation, in that Basque speakers were largely concentrated in parts of the country. In Wales, most areas where Welsh is spoken by a majority of the population are in the north and west of our country.

But the Basques have made determined efforts, largely through education, to substantially increase the number of Basque speakers. They have made significant progress, and some people we spoke to said that up to 50% of the population has some grasp of the language. This is extraordinary, given that the language was banned during the Franco period.

There are clear differences between Wales and the Basque country, and it would be foolish to think that what they have done could be slavishly replicated in Wales. But one lesson that I took away from my visit was that we have to raise our game in Wales.

The first term of the national assembly in Cardiff Bay has been characterised by awful timidity, caution and petty squabbling. No wonder people think it is a glorified county council, under the current Labour-led coalition it acts like one. Wales deserves better than this.

With leadership, a bit of audacity, clear vision, determination and strategic thought, Wales' fortunes can be turned round. But we have to think big. I want a Plaid Cymru government in the national assembly to give the people of Wales a reason to be proud of our nation, and to improve our flagging economic fortunes.

Although we could not replicate precise policy initiatives, we can match the Basque's spirit and confidence. Wales can and must replicate their success.

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